A conventional prior art hydraulic damper or shock absorber comprises a cylinder defining a working chamber having a piston slidably disposed in the working chamber with the piston separating the interior of the cylinder into an upper and a lower working chamber. A piston rod is connected to the piston and extends out of one end of the cylinder. A first valving system is incorporated for generating damping force during the extension stroke of the hydraulic damper and a second valving system is incorporated for generating damping force during the compression stroke of the hydraulic damper.
Various types of damping force generating devices have been developed to generate desired damping forces in relation to the speed and/or the displacement of the piston within the cylinder. These multi-force damping force generating devices have been developed to provide a relatively small or low damping force during the normal running of the vehicle and a relatively large or high damping force during maneuvers requiring extended suspension movements. The normal running of the vehicle is accompanied by small or fine vibrations of the unsprung mass of the vehicle and thus the need for a soft ride or low damping characteristic of the suspension system to isolate the sprung mass from these small or fine vibrations. During a turning or braking maneuver, as an example, the sprung mass of the vehicle will attempt to undergo a relatively slow and/or large vibration which then requires a firm ride or high damping characteristics of the suspension system to support the sprung mass and provide stable handling characteristics to the vehicle. Thus, these multi-force damping force generating devices offer the advantage of a smooth steady state ride by eliminating the high frequency/small excitations from the sprung mass while still providing the necessary damping or firm ride for the suspension system during vehicle maneuvers causing larger excitations of the sprung mass.
The continued development of hydraulic dampers includes the development of multi-force damping force generating devices which are simpler to manufacture, can be manufactured at a lower cost and which improve the desired force generating characteristics.